HOBOKEN, New Jersey, May 1, 2007 - Liberty Science Center, Jersey City, New Jersey, names Hammerhead Advertising lead Agency of Record for brand strategy, advertising development and media planning and buying in support of its upcoming re-launch and sustaining campaign.

“Ultimately, the decision to retain Hammerhead was based on their strong grasp of our overall institutional mission and their ability to translate that mission into a provocative and very human communication,” said Liberty Science Center Vice President of Marketing, Mark Mattia. “We are absolutely thrilled to be a part of something so locally relevant that addresses issues of such global importance,” said Todd McVey, Partner and Co-Creative Director of Hammerhead.

To effectively communicate the institution’s transformation, Liberty Science Center has hired Hammerhead Advertising of Hoboken, New Jersey in addition to Trajectory of Morristown, New Jersey, and Third Wave Research of Madison, Wisconsin, bringing a team with strong creative, strategic and analytic skills to the marketing process.

With an annual advertising budget of $2.5 million in the first year and approximately $1.7 million in following years, Liberty Science Center intends to employ a strong CRM approach, one which is new to the institution.

“We’ll be looking at traditional advertising such as radio, print and outdoor with an appropriate amount of direct mail, but we will also be branching out into CRM and new media in a big way, focusing directly on our audience members rather than relying on the more traditional ‘wide-cast’ approach to museum advertising,” Mr. Mattia concludes.

We had to reinvent ourselves, from the concrete footing on up. We’re relying on Hammerhead to assist us in bringing this provocative thinking to life in the minds of our diverse audiences,” said Science Center Marketing Director Santa Cruz Hughes.

Liberty Science Center’s commitment to the communities in the immediate and surrounding areas is evidenced by its recent $109 million expansion that adds an additional 125,000 square feet of space for exhibits and programs.

The Science Center’s grand opening is scheduled for July 19th after two years of extensive renovations. The exhibits will include a 13,000 square foot exhibit on tall buildings - “Skyscraper! Achievement and Impact” – that among other amazing experiences, will allow children and adults alike to walk along an I-beam, hear stories from construction workers, architects and engineers and even create digital structures they can test in a wind tunnel. Children can get a real sense of how great cities like New York are being built today — inspiring some to help build the cities of tomorrow.

“Our Hudson Home” is another incredible exhibit that will help educate guests about the lower Hudson River and estuary, and not only how plant and river life interact, but also how humans interacts with them. Guests can also get hands-on experience loading and unloading cargo from a freighter, thanks to the wonders of computer-generated technologies.

The advertising campaign, aimed at families and educators alike, is scheduled to launch in June throughout the New Jersey, New York Metro area.

Hammerhead Advertising, which operates out of an old factory in Hoboken has been in business for seven years. They’ve consistently doubled their billings each year since opening their doors. Hammerhead’s rapid growth is fueled by their unwavering emphasis on a very human and sometimes edgy creative, brand development and strategic smarts, along with their traditional and non-traditional approach to media planning.

Hammerhead was co-founded by New York agency ex-patriots Todd McVey and John Perls - who are also the agencies creative directors.